


Sora's Meowriffic Adventures

by bukkunkun



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe - Actors, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst and Humor, Children, Cutesy, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gen, M/M, Meet-Cute, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Show Business, Stand Alone, get ready for diabetes, it's a cutefest my pals
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-13
Updated: 2019-05-01
Packaged: 2020-01-12 16:13:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18450089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bukkunkun/pseuds/bukkunkun
Summary: Riku's a tired man working 60 hours a week just trying to get by. He's pretty average as far as burned-out milennials go, but there is something different about him.He's pretty sure he was a TV actor's first kiss several years ago, and he was sure that crush hasn't gone away.





	1. yearbook

**Author's Note:**

> > hint since i'm awful at writing things in proper canon like a gorilla with brain damage im thinking of continuing the thirsty single parent riku fic feat. kid's tv show host sora
>> 
>> — ⭕️ bukkun @ mark of mastery 2019 🌟 (@trickscd) [16 February 2018](https://twitter.com/trickscd/status/964498548472528896?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw)
> 
> Previously part of [i want you for a lifetime](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15000257), it is now a standalone that has little to no bearing on the plot of i want you for a lifetime! If you wanna see an updated version of i want you for a lifetime, why don't you go check out... [Love Conquers All](https://twitter.com/trickscd/status/1111149287923044352)? :3c A guaranteed banger, according to some people. Give it a go if you're curious about it ! 

“Riku! You’re home!”

“Yeah, I’m home,” Came his exhausted reply, but the bright smile of the little boy who served as his guiding star for most of his life managed to banish some, if only a little bit, of his fatigue.

All Riku wanted to do when he got home was sleep.

There were other things he could do, like perhaps getting some writing done with a mug or seven of coffee; or maybe some chores he’d been meaning to do, but right now, all the plans he had been making on the commute home dissolved in the waves of his exhaustion.

Now, Riku just wanted to sleep.

He ruffled the little boy’s hair, the same silver as his own and their father and knelt down to meet him eye to eye. “Hey, Dusk.” He smiled softly, and the boy’s eyes shone with glee. “You been good?”

“Uh-huh!” His little brother nodded excitedly, “And I cleaned up the house, too!”

Somehow, phrases like that uttered by children activated his flight-or-fight response, and Riku hurried into the living room, bundling Dusk along to survey their tiny apartment for damage. He knew Dusk was a good kid who meant well and did his best, but he also knew how much chaos five-year-olds could cause. Several hours at the nearby kindergarten for several draining shifts over half a year now had showed him exactly how much suffering even just a single child could cause in a single afternoon.

He’d had to cut his hair short because of that one time a little girl mistook her candy as hair clips. He still couldn’t quite let that go, even it had been weeks since it happened.

Thankfully, Dusk was a more careful child than most children were, and the apartment was mercifully intact. The pillows on the beat-up couch he bought at a coworker’s garage sale were a little haphazardly arranged, the indoor houseplants’ pots weren’t more broken than they already are, clay and duct tape and elastomeric sealant and all, and the TV looked like it was still working.

“Really?” He said, more relieved than anything as he patted Dusk’s head. “That’s amazing. You did great!”

Dusk lit up at that, and bounced on his heels. “That means you’ll come watch Bumpis with me, right?” He asked excitedly, and Riku blinked at him.

Oh, that was right—he made a promise with Dusk about that. Half-awake earlier that morning before he dropped Dusk off at his kindergarten, he agreed to watching that show Dusk loved watching in exchange for cleaning the house up as best as he could. Riku couldn’t really remember what the show was called or what it was about, but he did know at the very least that Dusk really liked the fat cat (uh, dog?) mascot pet the main character had with him. Whoever he was.

It all started with Dusk complaining about how every time the two of them settled down to watch the show, Riku was either busy falling asleep, or already asleep. While he hated sleeping on anything he did with Dusk, Riku worked nearly 60 hours a week to make ends meet for him and Dusk. All he could really do was sleep off the fatigue—it was hard, living alone with a kid that’s practically your own, but Riku knew it was for the best.

For his, and for Dusk’s sakes, he had to do it.

Still, it really wasn’t fair to his little brother for him to be nodding off so frequently like that, and Riku could feel the shame coiling in his stomach because of it. It was because of that shame that he did his absolute most to make up for it with Dusk—he even bought that dog (cat?) onesie the boy had begged him for last Christmas.

Granted, it did use up more than half his Christmas bonus _and_ made him miss out on one of the Christmas parties of one of his jobs, but it made Dusk happy. That was enough, for him.

“Yeah, of course.” Riku nodded, laughing softly, and Dusk pouted.

“And you promise you won’t fall asleep?”

“I promise.” Riku replied, “C’mon. Let’s get washing up and dinner done with so we can catch the show before it airs.”

The little boy cheered in delight, and led their usual routine. Riku sluggishly followed him into their bedroom, where after he finished changing out of his uniform at a fast food restaurant and into a comfortable pair of shorts and a shirt, helped Dusk into his well-loved onesie. Together, the brothers reheated some Mac and Cheese Riku made the night before, and they settled down across each other at their small dining table to eat.

Quietly, but smiling fondly, Riku let Dusk cheerfully tell him what happened that day at school. He listened carefully as he could—while Dusk’s teacher, a soft-voiced woman named Aerith, told him the boy was an utter charm to work with, he knew he still had to keep an eye on how Dusk was doing. There really wasn’t much to worry about, based on Aerith’s reports and Dusk himself—he got along well enough with his schoolmates, and so far there hadn’t been much problems with anything. Still, it didn’t hurt to be careful. He wouldn’t fail Dusk.

Not the same way his family had failed him.

Riku and Dusk then went on to do the dishes, Riku handing them to the little boy carefully, with stern instructions to wipe them down slowly before putting them back in their drawer. While it was usual for Dusk to complain about housework, tonight, he was quiet.

Determined, even, and it warmed Riku’s heart to think he was doing all that to have Riku actually _be_ with him to watch this… Bumpis thing. He had to meet Dusk’s efforts halfway.

When they were done, Dusk practically dragged Riku over to the couch, the man laughing softly at the boy’s enthusiasm. The two of them settled down on the couch, Dusk making a big deal out of arranging the pillows for Riku’s comfort, much to his amusement. He then busied himself with turning the TV on for the both of them, and tucked himself into Riku’s side comfortably when he was finished.

Riku ruffled his hair again. “Hm, you’re a bit diligent today.”

“Di… li… gent?” Dusk echoed, and Riku chuckled.

“Hard working.” He said, “You must be really looking forward to this.”

“Uh-huh!” The boy nodded, “I’ve always wanted to watch with you around, Riku! Sometimes I can’t answer Sora’s questions, but I know you can!”

The faith this boy had in him was astounding. It made something clog Riku’s throat, but he swallowed it down and plastered a smile on his face.

“Thanks, Dusk. I’ll do my best.” He replied. Riku had no idea who this Sora was, but Dusk was quick to hush him as the commercials ended to let the show begin. The moment the opening song kicked in, Dusk cheered happily as he always did, and Riku couldn’t help the warmth that flared up in him at the sight of it.

He was so glad Dusk was so much happier now, he thought. He wouldn’t trade anything in the world for this.

On the TV, cartoonish fields and clouds rolled by, and eventually a castle appeared in the distance. It then panned across a busy—still cartoonish—city, showing different people Riku didn’t recognise, but Dusk could name all of them before their names appeared on the screen.

It was oddly startling, really. He had sat down with Dusk a few times to watch this show, but with how little he knew of it, it became startlingly clear just how little attention he’d been really paying to this. And Dusk _loved_ this show. What kind of a brother was he?

Soon, the show panned to a lonely kind of house on a hill, and— _oof_ —Dusk cheered, throwing his hands up and smacking Riku in the face. The boy didn’t seem to mind, and Riku wondered why—but his answer came in the fact that that fat cat (dog? Both?) popped up on screen, peering at them with paws up on the bottom of the frame. It was making some cute hybrid of a noise between a meow and a bark, and was somehow licking the screen, as if it was the viewer’s face.

“Bumpis! Bumpis!” Dusk cheered, and realisation finally clicked in Riku’s tired brain.

Ah, right. The little pet-thing was kind of a main character. He had to at least remember _that_.

“Well, okay, yeah, it’s pretty cute.” Riku admitted, and he watched bemusedly as Bumpis was taken away by a pair of hands, and Riku’s world skidded to a halt.

The cutest boy in the world flashed him a five megawatt smile, and Riku didn’t think he’d ever get to see actual angels walking the earth.

“ _Hi! It’s Sora. Nice to see you again!_ ” He said cheerfully, those sapphire blue eyes drawing Riku in like a moth to the flame, and his jaw fell slack. The brunet held Bumpis close to himself like a cat, hugging it warmly around its midsection. “ _How are you all doing?_ ”

His cheeks dimpled gorgeously, and Riku didn’t know if his blurry vision was playing tricks on him or the guy had _freckles and he was so unfairly cute._

“I’m great!” Dusk answered with the enthusiasm of a child in school, and just in correct timing, the brunet nodded.

“ _That’s wonderful! Do you know what we’re going to do today?_ ”

You, hopefully, Riku thought, and beside him, Dusk giggled.

“No, silly, we’re going on an adventure, Riku!” he said, and the man stared down at his little brother.

He did _not_ just say that out loud.

“Oh.” He replied intelligently, and Dusk turned back to watch the show.

Today’s show was about sea mammals. Sora taught about how mammals could live in the sea, travelling to a conveniently nearby beach with Bumpis before going on a boat piloted by an animated talking duck named Donald.

Riku couldn’t really understand what the duck was saying—the voice actor should _really lay off the quacking_ —but Dusk somehow magically understood him anyway. As they took off, Sora somehow lost Bumpis, and Dusk didn’t seem too worried about it. Maybe it was an episode staple to lose Bumpis somewhere in the process.

The boat ride went on as with any children’s show with rides did—not exactly conformant to geography _and physics itself_ —but they did get to various places all over the world to see sea mammals. And then things got _weird._

“He can _what?_ ” Riku blinked, as somehow Sora’s necklace made him transform into a merman, and Dusk nodded enthusiastically.

“Oh, oh! Sora’s necklace is magical!” He explained, “Sora can turn into a lot of things so he can find Bumpis!”

“ _Let’s see here!_ ” Sora said, swimming as Riku expected a merman to swim, and he realised the brunet had a dolphin tail. Huh. That’s new. “ _Where could Bumpis have gone off to?_ ”

Right now, Sora and Donald went to the Arctic Ocean, and Riku was sure the brunet should’ve frozen from hypothermia right about now, but he should really stop applying real-world rules to a freaking _kids show._ That, and Sora looked _even better_ shirtless. This was already his favourite episode.

“Over there! Over there! On the iceberg!” Dusk cheered, and Riku saw a black paw print on one of the icebergs.

Riku couldn’t help but smile at his enthusiasm. It was endearing, really.

“ _On the iceberg!_ ” Sora said, as if he heard Dusk’s answer. “ _You’re right! Let’s go have a look._ ”

And so the episode went on like that, with Bumpis leaving paw prints all over the place for Sora and his viewers to find and comment on, interjecting information about sea mammals in the most child-friendly way that it made Riku wonder why his high school biology classes weren’t that easy.

They met dolphins asking for help with catching fish, seals asking where the penguins were (but, Riku thinks, the fact that they were looking for the penguins to _eat_ and not to play with flew right over Dusk’s head), and orcas— _god_ , the orcas. Sure, Riku liked orcas ( _way_ too much), but so did his little brother, it seemed. Dusk now wanted a stuffed orca plush for his birthday.

Riku wanted that cute brunet for _his_ birthday.

Eventually, Sora found Bumpis, before he immediately ran into some trouble with the antagonist of the story, a masked woman named the Red Witch. With some help from the mammals and Dusk’s input—his surprisingly loud “ _Wonder Meow Wow!_ ” still rang in Riku’s ears—he sent her flying off into the distance, and they all went home happily after saving the day.

Overall, a standard kid’s show, and while Dusk was happy and satisfied with the episode, Riku was left with an uncomfortable need to meet the cute brunet.

As Dusk hurried away to get ready for bed, Riku stayed to watch the credits of the show to see what Sora’s real name was—and much to his delight, he found that it was one and the same.

“Man,” he laughed softly, “I’m an idiot. _Of course_ kids’ shows use their actors’ real names.” He shook his head. “Sora, huh. That suits him—”

And he stopped for a moment, and continued staring at the TV to see the show’s title come up again, with part of the picture including Sora hugging Bumpis with a bright grin on his face.

“Hold on.”

His blood felt like ice in his veins. That couldn’t be right—it _couldn’t be._

Riku hurried off the couch, turning the TV off without looking before he tossed the remote between the pillows haphazardly. He made his way to their bedroom, where Dusk had just finished brushing his teeth to get into bed to snuggle a battered old pastel yellow bat plush. Riku made his way to the bookshelf, and pulled out his high school yearbook.

“Riku?” Dusk mumbled, but too caught up in his thoughts, Riku didn’t answer him. Mumbling darkly, he flipped through the pages, until he saw the photo of a blue-eyed brunet grinning brightly at the camera, his rainbow-coloured braces bright as day.

“Oh, sh—” He stopped himself, and finally looked at Dusk, who was staring at him with his head cocked. Riku grinned at the boy uneasily, and looked down at the photo again.

Now he remembered—Sora was that kid who liked science just as much as he liked running around outside and playing sports. Though he was popular among everyone in school, he didn’t exactly belong to any circle of friends, and only that redhead friend of his was the one who really stuck with him through anything.

Conversely, Riku was one of the quiet ones, bookish and shy, who hung out at the library a lot, hiding behind his glasses and books. Still, he was part of the swimming team, and—

Oh, god. The swimming team.

He ran his hand through his hair, sighing deeply.

He didn’t realise that was Sora until he saw him again. Damn.

“Riku? Can we go to bed now?”

“Sure, Dusk.” Riku replied, closing the yearbook to get in bed next to his brother, cuddling the little boy warmly. They were quiet, but Riku’s mind was in a clamour, thinking about the cute brunet on TV, and if he would still remember him, years after high school.

Sora was a people person, Riku knew, maybe he would remember.

As Dusk’s breaths evened out in sleep in front of him, Riku thought about what would meeting Sora again be like. Would he still be the same person? Would he remember Riku? Would he remember that he was Riku’s first kiss that one drunk-ish night after the swim team won the championships?

Would Sora be happy if Riku told him he thought Bumpis was cute?

Riku groaned, and hugged Dusk close to himself.

“Stop dreaming, get back to living,” he mumbled darkly to himself, remembering the last words their father spat in his face. “Sora probably doesn’t remember you, and it’s like as if you’ll get to meet him again anyway.”

Tomorrow he had first shift at the grocery store. He had to be up early.

With that thought, he fell asleep with a heavy heart.


	2. tickets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As promised, I'm finally continuing the story! please enjoy.

“And there is nothing you can do about it, Sora!” The Red Witch towered over him threateningly. “The city will be mine!”

“Not if I can help it!” Sora shot back, gripping his sword tightly. “Bumpis and I won’t let you!”

“You can try,” She cackled, “But know this— _this_ time, _I’ll_ be the one sending _you_ flying!”

“Okay, who the _hell_ thought to change this stupid-ass line without telling me?”

“And cut!”

Sora immediately relaxed his posture, but he flinched at the sound of his brother’s voice. Across him, the Red Witch pulled off her hat and mask, huffing in annoyance as she tapped her foot impatiently.

“What is it now? Wanna say that to my face?” She snarled, and a sour-faced man standing next to a blond glowered back at her.

“You call that ad-libbing?” He hurled back at her, and Sora sighed, shaking his head, holding the redhead’s wrist when she got ready to throw her mask at the man.

“Okay guys, cut it out,” he said tiredly, looking apologetically at their director, a small, sweet-faced man who looked a little lost and alarmed at the sudden outbursts. “You know Mickey will never get used to you two dragging each other, so quit it.”

The redhead whirled around to look at him. “But Sora—”

“Kairi,” Sora sighed, and Kairi huffed, crossing her arms. The man she was glaring at smirked triumphantly, and Sora looked at him witheringly too. “You too, Vanitas.”

His older brother frowned deeper at that, and scoffed.

“Alright, you guys,” Mickey said cautiously, “Are we, um, settled?”

“Yep,” Sora smiled at him sweetly, “Sorry for the confusion.”

“Okay.” The man nodded, and got off his seat to head towards Kairi. He held her hands, and squeezed them gently. “Listen, Kairi, you’re a wonderful actress, and while ad-libs are fun, please do coordinate with us if you’re dissatisfied with a line. I’m sure we all value everyone’s input on this project, so it would be for the betterment of everyone if you do speak up when you have concerns.”

“I’m pretty sure Van won’t mind,” the blond Vanitas stood next to said kindly, but they could all see how he was pinching his brother _hard_ in his side. “Right, Van?”

“Whatever, Ventus.” He mumbled, and Ventus smiled brightly.

“I know you and Kairi have fun dragging each other regularly, but please, for production’s sake, keep it professional on set.” He said, “We can’t really lose much time in shooting.”

“Oh, yikes.” Kairi deflated slightly, “Sorry, Ven.”

“It’s no problem.” Ventus nodded, “Let’s get that line sorted out again, first. I think we could all use a break, don’t you think?”

Mickey looked relieved. “Absolutely. We _have_ been filming for a while.” He nodded, and clapped his hands, “Alright, everybody! We’ll take an hour.”

The crew dispersed quickly, and Sora found himself standing by himself still on set while Kairi quickly jogged over to Ventus, Vanitas and Mickey to talk with them. He looked down at the life-sized stuffed toy of Bumpis they used as a placeholder, and gingerly held its hand.

He did enjoy working here, definitely, it was really something else to bring your brother’s creative vision to life, but as of late, he felt… tired. Not exactly tired of it all to throw it all away, but he felt something was missing.

It’d started being that way ever since they filmed the episode about the sea mammals, where they really went to an oceanarium to swim with some of the animals to get a good feel of them. The orcas, especially, reminded him of something, though he wasn’t quite sure what.

“Hey, Sora!” He looked up from Bumpis to see Kairi bounding back to him, and he gave her a smile.

“Hey.” He said, “You got things sorted out with Ven and Van?”

“Yep,” She nodded, “Though Vanitas said it might do us good to just change the script of the whole thing entirely.”

“Huh?” Sora blinked at her, “But… we’re kinda halfway through it.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t know with him,” Kairi shrugged, “Your brother is weird, but he’s the writer of the show. I guess in the end it really is his say, y’know?”

“Huh.” Sora looked back down at Bumpis, and he almost missed Kairi smiling fondly at him.

“Hey, Sora?” she said again, softer this time, and he looked back at her. “I just had a thought.”

“Yeah?” He cocked his head.

“Remember back in high school when the swim team won championships?” She asked, and he hummed thoughtfully. “You know, we were there to party with?”

“Oh, yeah.” Sora nodded, “It was around the track meet too.”

“Uh huh.” She replied, “You remember the name of that guy you kissed behind the bleachers?” She asked, and Sora’s cheeks turned pink.

“K-Kairi? What ki-kinda question is that?”

“Nah, I just remembered he liked orcas or something.” She said, before ruffling his hair. “I dunno, you really look like you’d been out of it since you went swimming over at Atlantica Oceanarium. I was thinking it was probably the orcas scarring you for life, but I suddenly remembered that guy from high school.”

“O-oh.” Sora calmed down at that. Kairi, of course, had noticed. _Of course_ she would have. They’d been friends since they were children. He felt warm affection swell in his chest for her, and he smiled shyly. “Yeah, I remember him. His name is Riku.”

“Wow, you still remember that guy?” Kairi blinked at him, and he laughed nervously, rubbing his arm.

“Shut up,” he did _not_ whine, no matter what Kairi says, “I had the biggest crush on him back then, okay?”

“What about now?” She asked, and he paused at that.

“I don’t… know.” He answered truthfully, frowning. “It’s been years since I last saw him. He probably doesn’t remember me anymore.”

Kairi rolled her eyes. “Sora, you star in a TV show.”

“For _kids._ ” He pressed, “Kairi, as far as I know, full grown adults don’t usually have the time to watch kids’ shows.”

“You’d be surprised.” She hummed, frowning slightly as she tapped her chin in thought. Sora gave her a withering look, and she shrugged. “Keep telling yourself that, Sora. Some people watch this show because you’re cute, you know.”

“What?” Sora gaped at her, “No way! _You’re_ the hot one!”

“It’s not the same!” Kairi wagged her finger at him, winking, and Sora sighed.

“ _Kairi_ ,” he began, but he stopped when he heard Ventus calling him over.

“Hey, Sora!” His brother waved at him, “Let’s go get some lunch.”

Sora looked at Kairi, and she nodded at him. “Go ahead,” she said, “I’ll go see what Naminé is up to.”

“O-okay then.” He nodded, hurried off to meet up with his siblings.

Alone and on set, Kairi crossed her arms and smiled at Sora’s retreating back fondly. Sora had been really out of it recently, and Ventus had talked to her about his worries for his little brother. Hell, as his _best friend_ , she was worried about him too, but maybe things weren’t as bad as she and Ventus feared they were.

It would be nice to find something that could cheer Sora back up again. Sure, he always smiled the way he did on camera, but off it was a different story, and even Vanitas seemed to notice it. She shook her head and headed onwards back towards her trailer, where she saw a blond young man walking alongside Naminé.

“Oh, Roxas!” She lit up, and he looked at her. “Your brothers are going out for lunch. You might wanna pick up the pace if you wanna go with.”

“Not telling me again?” The blond huffed, “Jeez—catch you later, Naminé!”

The blonde he was walking with nodded sedately, and he hurried off. She turned to look at Kairi and her smile widened.

“Hi.” Kairi smiled back at her, “Wanna grab some lunch?”

“Of course.” Naminé nodded, and they easily fell in step with one another.

“Hey, Naminé?” Kairi asked, and her cousin looked up at her with her head cocked.

“Yes?”

“Do you remember a guy named Riku? He used to go to our school.”

She paused for a moment to think, but then she lit up in recognition. “Oh, I think I do.”

“Do you know if we could maybe arrange for them to meet again?” She asked, and Naminé’s gaze softened on her.

“Is this about Sora?” she asked, and Kairi nodded. “Alright.” Naminé replied, “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thanks.” Kairi beamed, “C’mon, I’ll treat you to some katsu.”

Naminé giggled. “Thank you,” she said, “Though I think that’s more of your thing than mine.”

“Guilty as charged.” Kairi snickered, and together, they walked on.

Sora could use the new company. Sure, he loved his friends a lot, but Kairi knew that Sora would need someone new—and someone _important_ in his life. He may be a happy-go-lucky kind of guy, but he could get lonely sometimes, too.

* * *

It had been weeks since Riku remembered he was some TV show actor’s first kiss, and every rerun since then he’d been watching _Sora’s Meowriffic Adventures_ with Dusk every time he could. It had long occurred to him that despite the whole… magic thing, the show was essentially about science, touching on topics from math, biology, chemistry and even physics (like that one episode about wind and how birds flew, and _no,_ he was _not_ staring at Sora’s ass as he flew on the gryphon they made friends with) while he went on adventures in that unnamed kingdom they lived in.

He didn’t really know why the castle in the distance was there in the first place, but the show hadn’t tackled it yet. He didn’t even know why he was so concerned about it.

If he was any self-respecting parent to their not-son, he’d say it was a good show for Dusk to like. It was good that he was watching it with Dusk so the two could bond, and Dusk could learn new things in the process, but he couldn’t help but feel like a dick for just watching it to ogle the cute brunet on TV.

He sighed deeply, lightly smacking his forehead against the doorway he stood in, surprising the young woman he worked with at the library. He jolted, and grinned at her apologetically.

“O-oh, uh, sorry.” He said awkwardly, but the woman gave him a kind smile.

“Rough week?” She asked, taking from him the mop he’d been holding, and he awkwardly handed it to her.

“Uh, kinda.” Riku replied, “Sorry for the trouble, Miss Aqua.”

“It’s not a problem at all.” She replied mildly, “How’s Dusk? I heard from Terra he’s been talking non-stop about you finally sitting down for some TV time.”

“Oh, yeah.” Riku laughed tiredly, “Recently, I’ve been watching his favourite show with him. Does wonders to his mood, always.”

“You’re a good brother.” Aqua nodded, and Riku laughed sheepishly. He could not— _absolutely could not_ —tell her the other parts involving Sora.

“Thanks.” He sighed, “It’s hard staying awake, but I manage.”

Aqua gave him a small smile, and nodded. “Oh, wait a sec, I remembered something someone left behind at a table.”

She hurried back to the reception desk, and Riku followed after her, cocking his head. She picked up a flyer and some slips of paper off the table, and held it up for him to see.

“ _Sora’s Meowrrific Adventures, the Road Tour?_ ” He read, and Aqua nodded.

“I’m not sure if this is the show Dusk likes, but I think he’d enjoy a show sometimes.” She said, and Riku gaped at the flyer. “It’s a special show like a theatrical performance, but I think it’s set in the nearby mall’s main atrium.”

“I-it is. Dusk _loves_ this show.” He shook his head. “But Miss Aqua, the tickets are so expen—”

Aqua held up the two slips of paper, and Riku realised they were tickets. He blinked at her, jaw slack, and she shrugged.

“This has been here for a while, so I suppose whoever it was that left it here isn’t exactly looking for it.” She said, but she was smiling. “I held onto it in case you wanted it for Dusk.”

“Oh, uh…” Riku’s cheeks turned pink. “Th-thanks, Miss Aqua. I, uh… wow.”

“You’re doing wonderfully as his parent, Riku.” She patted his shoulder, and pressed the tickets into his palm gently. “This ought to help, however it can.”

“Thanks.” Riku laughed softly, and if Aqua saw him wiping at his eyes after that, she gracefully didn’t say a word. “I… thank you. Really.”

“It’s not a problem.” She smiled. “I’ll take over your shift for that Friday evening, so you can take a break.”

“Thank you so much,” Riku said, and he knew he was sounding repetitive, but the sheer gratefulness that swelled in his chest made that all he could say. “I—I’ll make the most of this, Miss Aqua.”

She nodded, and tapped the mop on the side of the desk. “For now, though, let’s get back to work. Those books won’t sort themselves, you know!”

“Sure thing.” Riku nodded, and hurried away to put the flyer and the tickets back in his bag. Aqua turned to see a brunet man hiding by the doorway, still in the apron he wore for his kindergarten job, and she gave him a wave, giggling.

“ _Did he get it?_ ” He mouthed, and Aqua gave him a thumbs-up. He smiled and nodded, and gave her a wave.

“Bye, Terra,” She said softly, and the man hurried away.

She and Terra had saved up a bit together to get Riku the tickets as a gift, especially after seeing Dusk so happily reporting that Riku’s mood seemed to pick up after they started watching the show together. It didn’t take a long time with Riku to see how exhausted he was nearly all the time, and Aqua and Terra wanted to help him however they could.

Maybe she could even reach out to Ventus for something else—her childhood friend _was_ the man producing the show itself, so maybe she could pull some strings for an even bigger surprise.

She had a feeling something wonderful was coming. Oddly enough, she couldn’t wait.

* * *

“For real for _real?_ ” There were stars in Dusk’s eyes as he spoke, and Riku nodded, putting the tickets back in his wallet. “This Friday? The _both_ of us?”

“Yep,” He said, “I took the day off so we could go.”

When he showed up to pick Dusk up from Aerith’s, trying not to notice Terra’s conspicuous smiling, Aerith had told him that she had called his other job—a restaurant run by Aerith’s friends—and asked for a day off for him. Really, it was heartwarming to see the people around him orchestrating something like this for him, and he wanted to make sure to make the most out of it.

“Yay!” Dusk surfed forward to hug Riku’s midsection, and Riku hugged him back. “I’m really glad, Riku! It really isn’t as great without you!”

At that, Riku paused, and he deflated, kissing the top of Dusk’s head.

“I’m sorry I took so long, Dusk.” He said softly, “I promise, I’ll always be with you with whatever you do.”


	3. friday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Sora was here._ The man himself.
> 
> Riku’s first kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for the reception
> 
> drops this and leaves

Friday arrived far too quickly for Riku’s tastes, and soon he found himself standing with Dusk in a line filled with children and their parents, most of them much older—and _clearly_ better off—than Riku was. Still, he was used to the discrepancy by now—the mothers back in Dusk’s kindergarten were all judgemental of him at first, a single parent and so young, but they got over it.

This was nothing to him.

“Okay, Dusk.” Riku said, tugging on Dusk’s hand in his gently, and the boy looked up at him, bundled up warmly in an old muffler and jacket. Winter had yet to leave, but spring was just around the corner. Still, he and Riku got cold easily, so it had been in Riku’s better interests to bundle himself and his brother up warmly before they left home. “Some rules before we go in there.”

“Right.” The boy nodded.

“Don’t wander off, tell me if you wanna go somewhere.” Riku said sternly, “And don’t be shy about volunteering, okay? I’ll be supporting you all the way.”

“Of course!” Dusk huffed, “I wanna meet Sora!”

Riku smiled at that, and chuckled, shaking his head. “Don’t we all.”

“Alright, one at a time!” Riku looked up from his brother to see a sour-faced redhead manning the entrance gate, herding unruly parents and their equally squirmy children. Riku felt the twinge of pity in his chest for the guy—he’d been in the guy’s shoes some time ago for a smaller gig, and while he was a good few inches over six feet, there really _was_ something difficult about trying to tell some woman that no, Janet, queues exist for a reason, it doesn’t matter if you’re a celebrity’s relative, you have to line up like the rest of the people.

“Hey, Dusk,” Riku said, and the boy looked up at him determinedly. “Let’s show those people what decency is like, huh?”

“Yeah.” The boy nodded, and they eventually made it to the front of the line.

The redhead looked relieved to see Dusk was polite and quiet, and Riku let the boy hand his tickets over to the girl manning the counter. The bouncer had a nametag pinned to his shirt—Axel—and Riku cleared his throat at him.

“Rough day?” He said, and Axel snorted.

“Don’t I know it.” He replied.

“I know the feeling.” Riku laughed softly. At that, Axel looked surprised, and Riku shrugged. “I’d been in the bouncing business for a bit. _Not_ fun.”

“No kidding.” Axel snorted, and the black-haired girl at the counter handed Dusk their tickets again, now missing the stub, with a sweet smile on her face.

“Here you go, sweetheart. Have fun!” She said, and Dusk beamed back at her.

“Thank you, Miss Xion!” He said, and the girl giggled, giving Dusk a friendly wave.

“You have a good kid.” Axel nudged Riku, and the young man gave him a lopsided smile. “Least he’s not like a little demon.”

“Oh, don’t I know it.” Riku shook his head, and gave Axel a mock salute. “Keep bouncing, man. Hope you get a good paycheck for this.”

“I do.” Axel grinned, and answered Riku’s salute with his own. “A’ight, move on in.”

Riku and Dusk strode into the area bound by metal fences, and soon found a decent pair of seats in the crowd. Much to his surprise, the whole area was designed to look like the city Sora and Bumpis explored and protected, with different booths with displays shaped like different buildings and landmarks. Staff were all over the place, and while the booths weren’t open for business yet—according to the flyer, they opened after the show ended to allow other people free entry too—there were some people wandering around already looking at them. Dusk bounced in his seat excitedly, and Riku had to hush him gently a few times to keep him under control.

Riku took a look around on his own, still on his seat. There were toys and apparel on display at the booths, and Riku still had some leftover savings. Maybe he can get _something_ for Dusk, even if it was just one little thing.

He checked his watch, and he felt an odd ball of anxious energy growing in his throat.

Today was for Dusk, damn it, but he’ll be damned if he didn’t admit that he was looking forward to seeing Sora again.

“Hey, Dusk—” he began, but the lights suddenly dimmed, and families began hurrying to find seats. Dusk lit up, and began bouncing anew in excitement.

Riku felt nervous energy hum inside him. This was it.

“ _The show will begin in ten minutes. Road Show ticket holders should please find seats._ ” An unfamiliar young man’s voice rang over the crowd, and when Riku looked up, he realised that the show had attracted a generous crowd in the second and third floors of the mall. Free admission, he thought dimly, maybe Aqua didn’t need to go through the trouble of holding on to the tickets after all…

“Ten minutes is too long!” Dusk whined, and Riku looked back at him.

That was right—this was for Dusk, after all. He should really be thankful they were here at all.

“Be patient,” Riku said, and the boy pouted. “C’mon. What would Sora do?”

“He’d wait it out.” Dusk replied in defeat. Riku nodded, and patted his head.

“Good. C’mon, we can wait it out, right?”

Dusk smiled a little at that, and nodded.

“Yeah.” He said. “Thanks, Riku.”

Riku sighed, and settled back in his seat. A show in a mall’s main atrium, with Sora in the flesh. What could possibly go wrong?

* * *

“The show will begin in five minutes. All ticket holder guests must now be seated.”

Ventus turned off the microphone and sighed. “Van, feet off the sound board.”

“ _Please._ ” Came the strangled voice of their sound engineer, Demyx.

Vanitas rolled his eyes, and eventually just stood up. “You’d think after the first warning, people would learn.”

“Well,” Ventus paused to think of an explanation, but quickly pursed his lips shut. Vanitas gave him a lopsided smirk, and the blond shook his head, getting up from his seat too. “Shut up.” He lightly punched Vanitas’s arm, and smiled at Demyx. “We’ll leave the sound to you, okay?”

“You got it!” Demyx nodded, giving him a thumbs-up.

Ventus nodded, and ushered his brother out of the sound booth. Vanitas dug the heels of his feet into the floor, earning him a flat stare from the older man, but Ventus was far too used with him to have any difficulty getting him out of the booth. Unmindful of Ventus practically dragging him out of the sound booth, Vanitas squinted at the bannister of the third floor, where a rope harness from an overhead rig rested.

“Damn,” He said, and Ventus cocked his head at him.

“What’s wrong?”

“I keep thinking about how crazy our mall shows can get.” He said. “Stunts and all.”

“Well,” Ventus tapped his chin in thought. “Sora’s very athletic.”

A moment of silence passed between them, and Vanitas frowned deeper.

“That’s _all_ you have to say.”

“Van, we’ve been doing this for a while now, you know.” Ventus sighed, “I know you’re not frequently part of our crew when we do these shows, but we _do_ tell you everything it is that we do.”

Vanitas didn’t reply, still looking up at the third floor. Ventus sighed fondly, and bumped their shoulders together.

“I know you’re worried about Sora,”

“‘M not.”

“But,” Ventus spoke over Vanitas’s half hearted denial. “Trust me when I say that Sora isn’t going to fall. Hasn’t fallen once, and he won’t be falling anytime soon.”

Vanitas was quiet, and instead he squeezed Ventus’s hand. The blond smiled at that, and pulled him along.

“C’mon, into the director’s booth. Mickey’s expecting us.”

* * *

“3… 2… 1! It’s starting!”

Riku looked down at the finished countdown timer on his phone, and laughed softly. Ever since the five minute announcement came on, he turned it on so Dusk could have something to occupy him. He knew the five minutes could stretch further, so he wasn’t as agitated as some other people were in the crowd.

Dusk deflated when the show, in fact, did not start when he intended, and Riku patted his back.

“Sometimes, they can run a little late. Don’t worry, Sora’s coming.”

Dusk looked at him hopefully, but before Riku could say anything, all the lights in the atrium turned off. Riku could still see the lights coming from the stores in the corridors away from the atrium, but being in the middle of the mall with the lights out was… really _something._

Dusk squeaked in alarm, and Riku held him close as suddenly familiar laughter rang through the atrium.

“Fools!” The Red Witch appeared on the stage, a red spotlight shining on her, and much to Riku’s mild amusement, all the children gasped in shock. “All of you have fallen right into my trap!”

“R-Riku!” Dusk looked tearful. “I-it’s the Red Witch!”

“Don’t worry, Dusk, Sora will save us.” Riku said patiently.

Truth be told, the Red Witch was a bit hammy when it came to her role. Riku could tell her actress was having the time of her life playing the villain, and her joy shone through the passion she put into her role. Really, it made her incredibly admirable in Riku’s eyes, and he could see in the way she acted that there was no other place she would rather be.

Though, despite all that, the Red Witch, thanks to all her hammy tendencies, was a bit hard to take seriously.

She stalked around the stage menacingly, leering at the audience. “Now listen here, you frightened little lambs, I’ve closed off the entire atrium to the world! Sora will _never_ come to save you!”

Dusk looked shocked, and Riku was slowly reconsidering taking him to the show. He didn’t quite expect an introduction like this—for the most part, the Red Witch was generally harmless, causing some mild scuffle here and there, but this was a little… odd.

She got off the stage and began stalking through the crowd. Riku saw children curling away from her and hiding behind their parents, squealing in alarm sometimes when she feigned lunging at them. She approached his row of seats, and while she garnered similar reactions from parents and children, much to his surprise, Dusk squirmed out of his grip and stood in her way in front of Riku.

“D-Dusk?” Riku gasped, making a move to pull him back but the boy shook his head, determinedly meeting the Red Witch’s gaze.

“I-I won’t let you!” He stammered, three feet of child-like innocence and determination, and for a moment, Riku saw the Red Witch’s actress look confused. A true professional (and quickly winning Riku’s utmost respect for her and her craft), she quickly recovered, and smirked widely.

“Oh? You think you can stand up against me?”

“I-I dunno?” Dusk replied, and Riku could hear the parents fondly chuckling at such an honest response. “B-but I’m gonna try! I-I won’t let you hurt Riku!”

At that, the Red Witch completely stopped, and she looked straight at Riku. Her eyes widened as if she recognised him, and confusion sparked in Riku’s mind. How did she know him?

Still, one shock after another wasn’t enough to destroy her performance. She laughed at that, and pointed at Dusk.

“Then try this on for size!”

“Dusk—” Riku began, out of reflex to protect his little brother, when he was interrupted by a familiar voice.

“Not on my watch, Red Witch!”

Another spotlight, white and bright, shone on the third floor, and Riku’s jaw dropped when he saw Sora standing on the bannister, holding onto a rope connected to the lighting rig above the atrium. He could see an invisible wire and the harnesses that were part of his costume also supporting Sora, but right now all Riku could focus on was the fact that Sora was here.

 _Sora was here._ The man himself.

Riku’s first kiss.

Riku felt his cheeks go bright red, but his embarrassing feelings were quickly abandoned when he pointed his sword—a large key—at the Red Witch, and something sparkled from her wrist. Riku realised it was a small, single-charge flare, but the effect made it look like Sora had shot a beam of light at her. She hissed, and whirled around to glare at him.

“Sora!” She snarled.

“It’s me!” He beamed, and swung down from the  third floor. Awed gasps filled the air as he soared over the audience’s heads, and he easily landed on the stage, quickly letting go of the rope while a sleight of hand got rid of the wire behind him. He settled into his signature battle stance, and cocked his head at the Red Witch. “Why don’t you go pick on someone your own size?”

The children cheered at Sora’s appearance, and the Red Witch snarled at him.

“You’re too late, Sora.” She spat, “I’ve trapped everyone in this atrium without any hope of escape!”

She jabbed a finger at Sora. “ _Including_ that infernal Meow Wow of yours!”

Sora looked shocked, and with a chilling cackle, the Red Witch swept up her cloak and strode into one of the black booths around the atrium that served as their backstage.

Dusk hurried back to Riku’s side, hugging him tightly, and Riku stroked his hair.

“I-I did it, Riku! I protected you!”

“Thank you so much,” Riku couldn’t help the smile that crossed his face. “You were very brave, Dusk.”

The boy smiled up at him with wonder, and on stage, Sora let out a sigh, deflating. “Bumpis…” He said sadly, but he peeked up when he looked out at the audience. “Oh! Where are my manners?” He laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head, and Riku felt like he could implode at how cute he was.

In person, he was even more adorable. He really had changed a bit since they were teens, but most of what made Sora, Sora was still there.

The heart-shaped face. The wide, sunny smile, the sky blue eyes and that sweet voice—the Sora in Riku’s memory didn’t seem too far off in the Sora of today.

“Hi! It’s Sora. Nice to see everyone again!” He gave the crowd a cheerful wave, and the children all cheered and waved back at him. “Looks like we’re in a bit of a pinch.” He said, nodding as he pouted thoughtfully.

Kill me now, Riku thought. He’s too damned cute for this world.

“We’re going to need to find Bumpis and save the day!” Sora declared, “Alright, everyone? I’m gonna need everyone’s help to break us outta here.”

He made a show of looking around the venue, humming and frowning as he usually did before a problem presented itself in the show’s regular episodes.

He lifted his sword experimentally, and pointed at the exit. Much to Riku’s surprise, another single-charge flare shot off near the door. He couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of Axel, who still stood by the gates next to Xion now out of her booth, shake his head and give Sora a ‘nothing happened’ gesture.

Sora huffed, and held his necklace. “Hmm, let’s see what I can transform into in here.”

Again, another single-charge flare shot off from a small, almost unnoticeable exhaust at the top of his crown pendant, this time considerably smaller than the one the Red Witch and the exit had. Sora looked alarmed at that, but he quickly deflated.

“Oh, no.” He said, setting his sword down as he shook his head. “There isn’t enough light in here to let me transform.”

“Oh, no!” Dusk gasped softly from beside Riku, and he couldn’t help but smile at that.

“This looks like a tough one.” Sora nodded. “Without Bumpis or my usual powers, I’m gonna need some help from you guys.”

Dusk immediately perked up at that, and he, along with some of the other children in the audience, began to jump up and down in excitement.

“Now, let’s take a look! I remember a brave young man who really stood up to the Red Witch? Can I see him?”

“Dusk, that’s you!” Riku said, and much to his surprise, Axel was by his side, holding out his hand for Dusk to take. “Oh, it’s you.”

“Don’t worry, dude, I’ll take the kid to the stage.” Axel grinned at him, and Riku nodded, gently leading Dusk from his seat to take Axel’s hand.

“Wait, but Riku—” Dusk protested, but Riku shook his head.

“Go and get ‘em, Dusk.” He said, smiling softly, and Dusk’s eyes widened at him. “I’ll be cheering you on from here. Sora needs you, after all.”

That seemed to placate the boy, and he nodded determinedly, taking Axel’s hand decisively. Riku waved at him as he and Axel went up to the stage, and the redhead easily lifted the boy to come up next to Sora, who beamed brightly at Dusk when they met. Riku quickly pulled out his phone from his pocket, and began to take videos. Dusk was going to want to relive this moment when they got home.

“Hey, there!” He greeted, as another stage crewmember fitted Dusk with a microphone. He knelt down in front of Dusk and held his hand gently. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Dusk,” the boy replied, stars in his eyes, and Riku didn’t know if he could handle seeing Dusk and Sora together before he exploded with cuteness. “It’s nice to meet you, Sora!”

“It’s nice to meet you too!” Sora nodded, “You’re a very nice kid, Dusk. Will you come with me to look for Bumpis?”

“Absolutely!” Dusk nodded vigorously, as if any of his hesitations from leaving Riku behind had suddenly disappeared. “I’ll do my best!”

“Thank you!” The brunet beamed, before getting back up onto his feet. “Alright, everyone, let’s get started!”

**Author's Note:**

> let's hope i can actually write a romcom holy shit


End file.
